(EST PUB DATE) TENSIONS IN THE SOVIET UNION AND EASTERN EUROPE CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 00471085
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 16
• Document Creation Date: March 8, 2023
• Document Release Date: September 24, 2019
• Case Number: F-2019-00314
• Publication Date: April 6, 1970

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TENSIONS IN THE SOVIET UNION AND EASTERN EUROPE
CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY
Introduction
_
V.
At no time in the history of the Soviet Union to date have
political forces outside the Communist Party leadership played a
significant role in influencing events. The Party apparatus, the
KGB and the deeply vested interests of the Soviet State hierarchy
are experienced in coping with dissidence of all types, and have an
impressive record of asserting their will at any cost to the rest of
society. The KGB in particular has an almost perfect record of
successful penetration, manipulation and suppression of opposition
elements. In addition there is an historic tradition of public apathy,
largely unchanged even today among the workers and peasants of
Russia, and dissident elements find little encouragement at the grass
roots. The authorities have often exploited the antipathy of the
working class toward the intelligentsia in suppressing incipient
demonstrations.
Thus the experience of Russian history strongly argues against
the proposition that the internal dissident will significantly influence
Soviet society in the short term. The conditions, nevertheless, which
abet existing trends toward more active and articulate dissidence
could be affected by external developments. A discrediting of the
regime by, say, another Czechoslovak crisis or a serious economic
crisis, might well promote radical changes in the internal political
climate. The paragraphs that follow should be considered in this
light.
Intellectual Dissent
To describe the nature and scope of dissidence in the Soviet
Union today poses the risk of over-emphasis. The Soviet regime
is by no means on the brink of collapse. On the other hand, some-
-thing new has indeed emerged in Soviet society since Stalin's death.
The growing demand for freedom of expression has been widely
reported in the Western press, and its suppression by Soviet authori-
ties has in turn contributed to disillusionment among foreign
Communists and Soviet sympathizers.
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The top rank of dissenters in the Soviet Union includes leading
/ scientists, some of whom share the views ,of Andrey Sakharov, an
eminent scientist. In 1968, Sakharov in a long pamphlet advocated
radical changes in human society the world over. Speaking of his
own country, he called for tolerance of political opposition, elimi-
nation of censorship, and frank discussion of Stalin's use of terror.
Later in 1968, other prominent scientists including Peter Kapitsa,
the Soviet Union's leading theoretical physicist, told Western
colleagues that they agreed with Sakharov. � The Sakharov pamphlet
has never been published in the Soviet Union, but through Western
-radio broadcasts and publications Sakharov's words have been carried,-,
back to his countrymen.
� .After the scientists, next in prestige come the writers, whose
tradition of social concern goes back to Turgenev, Tolstoy and even
-earlier. Their involvement in politics and protest has almost always ,
been reluctant. Alexander Solzhenitsyn tried for years to remain
aloof, but his determination to write what he believed and his metusal
� to conform to the requirements of the Party put him squarely against
the censors and the Soviet Writers' Union. Last fall the Writers'
Union expelled .Solzhenitsyn for his recalcitrance. Learning that he
had been expelled without an opportunity to defend his position,
Solzhenitsyn wrote a letter to the leaders of the Union that tpitomizes--
the attitude of the creative intelligentsia toward the Party hacks who
control the institutions of Soviet society. ".The face of your clock has.. _
been rubbed out Your clock, is.far behind the times. Open your
� heavy curtains. You do not even know that'outside it is already day....
In this time of crisis in our dangerously sick society you are not able
to suggest anything constructive, anything. good, only your- own_hetred
and your spying on others and your determination to coerce and never
to let go."
Beyond the circle of leading scientists and writers there-are-The
� active dissidents themselves. Most of them are younger members of:...
s .but their 'ranks also include workers,- teachersi., and: !,�
-other professionals. A leading 'physicist in this group runS-the only, �
"underground press" known to exist in the Soviet Union. -In_IY1ay'l-9.6-9
--fifteen of the most active dissidents organized a Committee for:the.
Defense of Human Rights, -and petitioned the United Nations to .protest
against violations of human rights ix the USSR. They were joined 'by 7-
fifty other �per-S'ens who publiCIyr announced their support. of !the,.
Committee. When the first petition received no answer, they seret-a.
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second. Now, ten months afterward, ten of the fifteen of the
organizers of the Committee have been imprisoned or placed in
mental hospitals, a favorite device of the regime for handling
awkward cases.
ill
I.,
In April 1968 the group began a bi-monthly Chronicle of Current
Events, reporting in detail on arrests, threats and other coercive
acts the Soviet regime uses to suppzess opposition, plus the latest
news concerning underground literature and petitions. Ten issues
Of The 'Chronicle were subsequently circulated in hundreds of type,!-..
written copies inside the USSR. A few copies of each reached the
�
West, where they have been republished and broadcast back into ,the
Soviet Union.
"
' The Writing and circulation of protest documents of many varieties,,-, �
..typed in carbon copies Or handwritten, continues in the face of regime,,
repression. In early 1968 the trial of Ginsburg and Galanskov inspired
hundreds of Soviet citizens to risk censure, job loss or imprisonment
by appealing to the authorities on behalf of the defendants. The
petitioners and protesters have since supported other causes, and
haire proposed their own political programs as alternatives to the
-..--CorninUni.gt Party's dictatorship. As one leader of the dissident move-,,,
ment, Lydia Chukovskaya, wrote, "The conspiracy of silence is at an
end."
�
In reaction to the increasing repression of creative freedom in
the USSR, outstanding representatives ii)f the Soviet intelligentsia have
--fOrsaken their 'homeland for life in the West. -In addition to Stalin's ---
daughter, SVetlana, they include three distinguished writers, a. prom-
inent philosopher and editor, a young nuclear physiciist, two out-
standing musicians, a magazine editor, two leading experts on cyber-
netics, a movie director, a film critic and three students from Moscow
University's Institute of Eastern Languages.
'---The picture of the Soviet Union that these defectors paint is one
of increasing cynicism and a,lienation on the part_of the intelligentsia, _ _
and apathy and bitterness in the working class. The philosopher .
Mentioned above had this to say an the subject: "People are still, �
'afraid to trust one another entirely. I shared my real views only withf t'1
--I'F`tTireCtli!tr men. Yet one knows how everybody feels�disillusioned �
contemptuous of the bosses and frustrated by the Party careerists
'WhdknOW'nOthing but how to win and keep power. Now these careerists
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sense their isolation from the rest of the population. They no
longer believe in anything. There are no idealists like my father
left among them. They only know that to keep their power they
must stick together, like cattle surrounded by wolves."
Minority Repression
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Among many of the non-Russian minorities in' the Soviet Union,
dissent is vocal and widespread. It is also vigorously repressed.
�In the-Ukraine, the arrests of hundreds of Ukrainian dissidents in,
.1965 and 1966, and subsequent repressions, have been vigorously
otested by, leadilag Ukrainian scientists, artists, and writers,'
iricluding Oleg Antonov, one of the Soviet Union's leading aircraft
designers.
� The contempt of the Baltic people for Soviet rule remains as
strong as-ever. It is no longer expressed in hopeless armed resis-
tance, as iewas twenty years ago. Instead, these small nations
manifest a vigorous determination to preserve their national cultures.
Even the local Communist Party apparatus has sought to assert a
degree of autonomy. In Estonia many works of Western literature
that have never been published in Russian are printed in the native
language. Two of the major underground documents recently-pro-
posing alternatives to the Communist dictatorship _originated in
Estonia.
Economic Unrest
Since the December 1969 Central Committee Plenum, the Soviet
press has given increasing attention to the -lethargy of the _economy.
� The beet informed defectors and even Soviet economists depict the
L "'"I economy as suffering from overcentralization, rigid control,.
system of falsification and misrepresentation that pr.events anyone:..:-
from knowing what the true conditions are. A recent letter to.
Brezhnev circulated thrdugh underground channels in:Moscow describe-d,
the problems of the economy in the following terms: It is obvious to
everyone that in our system nobody is involved in real work. They -
only throw dust in the eyes of the bosses. Phoney events, such as
ri; H-TIP"'�'bile'es and:special.days, have become for us more important than
the real events of economic and social life.... Other states in which
the economy is not ruled from the heavens, but from earth...are out- -
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distancing us more and more.... Freedom to discuss problems
openly, only such freedom, can put diseased Russia on the road
to recovery."
Eastern Europe
� In addition to its domestic problems, the Soviet Union has had .
chronic difficulty in managing its satellites in Eastern Europe. In
� Eastern Europe the tensions in society are much greater than in the
SOviet Union, the Western orientation much stronger, and the possi-
ekists that at.some future time one or more of these countriqs
kriay :sub es sfully make the transition that Czechoslovakia essayed in
r"`-' 'f-"'"11"t� 19.68i.' It SeernS inevitable that, as long as .the Soviet Union maintains s thc
'-'its current system, it will be impossible for the peoples of Eastern..,_
. .
' � Europe-to live in real harmony With the Soviet Union and that, to. .
aintain hegemony in the area., the Soviets will have to continue to
rely upon force.
Dissident elements in the USSR and Eastern Europe display
remarkable sympathy and understanding for their-fellows-throughout
the whole Soviet dominated region. Pavel Litvinov, Larissa Daniel
and others were exiled from Moscow for trying to stage a peaceful -
demonstration against the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. Others
protested the biased reporting in the Soviet press and Soviet threats
.befofe the trooyi moved in: Intellectuals in all Eastern-European .
countries'hay.e activel collaborated with the Soviet dissidents, and _
have expressed their ,sympathy for those arrested and imprisoned.
With its easier access to the West, Eastern Europe acts as a
'Conduit for books, letters, manuscripts and ideas. The flow back'
and forth across the SOviet borders is relatively easy and constant.
. -
The fact that Eastern European standards of tolerance and freedom
of -ex'presSion, although restrictive, are well above the levels -permitted.ii
" "`"'" ' iii-the".Soviet Union makes the region's ability to,influencp the Soviet
Union a consideration of major importance to the United States.
Covert:Action Programs Targeted at
Eastern Europe and the USSR
Current CIA operations targeted at Eastern Europe and the USSR
are designed to foster the tensions and cleavages outlined above. ilheir
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/ aim is .not to promote armed rebellion, but rather to encourage the
movement for greater personal freedom within the Soviet Union and
to weaken the ties between the nations of Eastern Europe and Soviet
Rus sia.
Radio Broadcasts
� Free Europe, Inc., and Radio Liberty Commitiee, Inc., wereb
organized in 1949 and 1951 respectively by the CIA. The major
- attiiiity'ef each operation is radio broadcasting. Radio Free�Europe.!
and Radio Liberty programming centers are located in Munich,:
"'''' it;:-Gerany. Their staffs, composed largely of Soviet and Eastern
��
expatriates with Americans in key policy positions, repreH
"""" "'Sent�a unique concentration of expertise and professional talent.
Radio Free Europe (RFE)
RFE currently broadcasts 19 hours daily into Poland,
---�� . _
Czechoslovakia and Hungarr, 12 hours to Romania, and 8 hours to
_ � _ . _ ., � .
Ift also conducts_ an extensiye�and.respected research pro:-
gram on-Eastern Europe. The radio has achieved a high degree of
--- --Eastern European listener acceptance as a station which identifies
with their needs, .thoughts and aspirations. It is estimated that over
30 million people listen to RFE broadcasts. This percentage rises
dramatically during periods of international crisis. RFE_is.denounced
almost daily by Communist media, and on occasion by key figures of
-the Eastern European governments. Czechosloval.Party Secretary c-�
Husak-has publicly paced a large share of the blame on RFE for his
Party's inability to win-over the Czechoslovak population.
The station is a political force with which the Eastern-European
�regimes' must reckon. The reason for this lies partly,
pattern of cross-reporting--i. e., reporting in detail to all the
� � ..
.Eastern European countries on domestic developments, in the.indi,-
i.ridual Countries. This is in effect the principal way the peoples of
the area learn of significant developments in their own and neighboring
countries. It can be demonstrated thaf RFE's repeated expos.bire of �
domestic policies and methods has forced modification of� censor4hip
� , 'and sitnilar restrictions in several of the Eastern European�coi.intries.�
- RFEts role in the 1968 Czechoslovak crisis is a.striking example,
of the radio's effectiveness. Prior to the ousting d'f Party First
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/ Secretary Novotny in January 1968, RFE was the chief source of
� factual information and research analysis on domestic affairs for
much of the Czechoslovak population. After the Soviet invasion
and the loss of their new-found freedom, the Czechoslovak
people again became dependent on the round-the-clock reporting
of RFE. Audience research indicates that RFE's listenership
rose to 70 percent of the populatiori. The station received � � �
thousands of letters extolling its programs, while the. Corhmunist
news media unleashed an unprecedented series of attacks on RFE.
the "1 oThe Soviet journal. Red Star described the radio.as the "most ,
strategic weapon in the global psychological war being carried on
y 6 4 k:fal by the United States .against the world socialist system.
Radio Liberty (RL)
t1 f.- Radio Liberty broadcasts round-the-clock in the Russian
..���. ,.,. � � . � _ �_.�
language, 14 hours a day in Ukrainian, and at varying lengths in �
� � � � � )��� � � - � . � �
15 other national languages. In contrast to RFE, RL is targeted_ _
against the more restrictive Soviet system. Effectiveness is more
difficult to measure. However, letters from ?isteners, defector
reports and legal travelers indicate that there is a sizeable audience.
-Itis generally agreed that RL merits a significant share'of _the
credit for the increasing manifestations of dissent and Opposition
a:mong-the Soviet intelligentsia. In this respect the Sinyayskiy-:
� Daniel trial of '1966 was a landma�rk. RL played a unique- role-in
conveying the fact, the significance, and Western reactions to the
trial to the'Soviet people. RL has also broadcast back into .the..
Soviet Union detailed information on every important letter, _pro-,
� test document, and -piece of underground literature which has ---
reached th,e West through underground channels. Recent_Soviet
defectors, among them the author Anatble Kuznetsov, have
specifically cited vital function in providing such information -
:and thereby expanding the scope and depth of dissident attitudes: �
Communist Attacks on the Radios
:Soviet and Eastern European attempts to discredit RFE and-,
- -RL 'are-intensive and coordinated. The Communist regithe-s. ate �
;-L1 �.� ' particularly'discomfited-by the two radios' detailed news
'-ic-overage and highly effective cross-reporting of internal.-devel..t,_�-
opments, and by their exploitation of intellectual ferment,... �
nationalist tendencies and general dissent within the Soviet Union: .
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A measure of the Soviet concern over Western broadcasts is
the extent of the Soviet jamming effort. At this time, Czechoslovakia
and Bulgaria also extensively jam RFE broadcasts. According to a-
VOA study, the Soviets use 2, 000 - 2, 500 jammers at an estimated
annual cost of $150, 000, 000. As indicated above, however, the
jamming is marginally effective inasmuch as the target audiences
hear the radios. on one or more frequencies. The cost of the Soviet
jamming effort can be put into perspective by comparing it with the
annual operating costs of FE, Inc., and RLC, Inc., $21, 723, 000 and
, 412, 770, 000 respectively. The radios represent a 20-year.invest-. 1
ment of over $400, 000, 000.
Non-Radio Programs of Free Europe, Inc., and -
Radio Liberty Committee, Inc.
-in addition to the radios, FE, Inc., and RLC, Inc., sponsor., ..
book distribution programs. FE,. Inc., also administers a program_
of support for exiles who fled Eastern Europe during the e.rly_ post-
g war period. RLC, Inc., sponsors the Institute for the Study of the
' USSR in Munich, Germany.
--FE, Inc., and RLC,. Inc.,. have distributed a total of two and. .
one-half million books and periodicals in the Soviet Union and
- Eastern Europe since the late 19501s. The titles comprise works
-which are nat-available in those countries because their content is
considered ideologically objectionable.
The book programs are, for the most part, demonstrably _ _
- effective in reaching directly significant segments of the professional _
and technical elite, and through them their colleagues in the Soviet
Union and Eastern Europe, with material that can inferentially be-_
said to influence attitudes and reinforce predispositions toward _
� intellectual and cultural freedom, and dissatisfaction with its absence.
_
The Institute for the Study of,the,USSR is,aresearch,organizatipn..
supported by Radio Liberty Committee, Inc. It is also heavily engaged__ _
� in a publications program designed to counter Soviet propaganda in
,:underdeveloped nations. In 1969 over 135, 000 copies of its-publications, .,
..were distributed to, the Arab countries, of the.Middle East. The
Pc-r*L' I (tlife" atS_Olpubli she S:the� prestigious "Pr orriinent Per s onalitie the
USSR" and sponsors symposia which bring. together the foremost
...Western experts on the USSR to consider new approaches to. dealing
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/ with the Communists. A recent budget reduction levied on Radio
�
Liberty Committee, Inc., has led to a decision to terminate the
Institute, although efforts are being made to find ways to carry on
certain of its activities independently.
Emigre Groups Involved in Publishing
. Over the years CIA has worked with many organized emigre
groups, only two of which have proved their continuing worth. A �
�-:- Russian organization (the NTS) L and a small group of Ukrainians: � ,
(Prolog) have shown a continuing capacity to keep in touch with the
-',homeland and to meet and influence Soviet citizens who travel abroad.�.-. t
Therihve.been able to exfiltrate and publish a large majority of the-�-.is ;1 a 1
It"-:!.:significant documents from the.Underground that have found -their .way:
to the West. The contacts of these organizations and their publishing.-..�_:�.
activities sustained the morale and determination of many, leading:...
Soviet dissidents over the lean years .before they began to receive.
public recognition abroad. Financial help from the CIA -has enabled
these organizations to operate on an effective -scale.�
, ..; t
-- Some years ago NTS began publishing for Soviet readers the
--major-works of Russian literature suppressed in the USSR, beginning
with Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago. This pattern has since been
,�� *-broadened by CIA systematically to encompass other types of literature,.
. aimed at deepertin.g the political impact of the program. Most of the -
works now being published by .C1A instrumentalities (NTS,, Prolog, La
Presse Libre, Niemanis, etc.) have been smuggled out of the Soviet
Union where they were originally distributed secretly in typed_or hand- _
Written copies. As the prestige of these publishing activities has - -
-r.iiiCreased, more and more manuscripts have come out. Publishing' �
begets writing. On'e way or another, this program has achieved pub-
, lication in the original language of almost every piece of polemical
� literature that has Come out of the USSR during the last decade.
Publications for Eastern Europe
CIA has been supporting for many years two magazines, Kultura,
.a�Polish monthly, and Svedectvi, a Czech quarterly, both published in
whose :influence in their target ountries has been considerable.
Kultura was founded in 1947 and soon won a reputation inside
,-�Poland for its high literary stature and objective reporting on domestic
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affairs. Inasmuch as its general policy was constructive criticism
rather than rigid opposition, it�received the grudging respect and,
initially, the tacit tolerance of the Polish regime. In recent years
the magazine has supported those individuals inside Poland who have
been persecuted for trying to retain the liberalization achieved in
the October 1956 "revolution."
Svedectvi, which started publication in 1957, has developed into
a friendly, understanding and objectively critical voice of the Czech
Li '-'intellectual in-elcile.� It advocates broad debate,, and the continuous;
_
and aggressive exchange of ideas, and subtly suggests changes and
- - improvements similar to those advocated by the deposed Dubcek '
On'e Czech defector a professional psychological warfare �, ;j-W TM
!Officer;* des'cribed Svedectvi as "by far the most effective psychological,
and political- effort against Czechoslovakia.'"
Coordination and Interrelation of Programs
Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty and the other organizations
and programs mentioned above reinforce each other's activities in
many ways, significantly enhancing the effectiveness of the overall
----effort-In the ecology of dissidence in the Soviet Union and Eastern
-Europe, political organizations such as the NTS and Prolog make .
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contact through Western European travelers with tile dissenters inside..
Through these eohtacts and-other means documents of protest, _
suppressed novels and similar materiel are -brought out to the West.
They are published in the original language and then broadcast by
Radio Liberty and Radio Free-Europe -back to the East, thus vastly
magnifying the audience for the original protest documents and in
iins-fim�ulating further dissidence. � Through the far-flung contacts � 01:
lbf the radios and other CIA instrumentalities the publications are
" distributed to travelers from the Soviet Union and Eastern-Europe dis-
creetly-and cheaply. Czech and Polish distributors enlist their corn-
'-'atribt'S-ii) carry' back Russian, volumes to Poland and Czechoslovakia (\
for shipment onward. Few East Europeans need to be told that the
future of their own countries depends in large measure upon develop-
ments in Moscow.
,..Iii�this system of interlocking organizations and people; -a vi.tal
played..by' overt.�gOvernment media � such as the. Voice 0 t: d
_ America and the magazines Problems of Communism and Amerika.
-Their role is of course �different from, that of the covertly .sponsored,..
media, and in recent years the two have worked harmoniously in
tandem to reinforce their respective efforts.
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Planning for the Future
1
Given the necessary policy approvals and budgetary resources,
we propose a number of additional courses of covert action, aimed
not only at the USSR itself, but also at Soviet presence and influence
outside the Bloc. Most of these can be undertaken with existing '
'aseets:'' .1n some instances it will be necessary to create new. ones.
'Exploitation of Internal Dissent
Virsti' we propose modernization of Radio Free Europe and: Radio
.. � Liberty: Spectrum interference (including jammihg).artd channel eon-
"h'� gestiOrfin'the short and medium wave broadcasting modes have reachedi-:
--such' serious proportions that higher power transmitters are needed to �
maintain an audible signal in the target area. The transmitting plants
of both Radio Liberty and Radio Free Europe are outmoded and under-
powered. Both require augmentation and modernization to sustain
their effectiveness in a field of friendly and hostile "super power"- _
--radio- competitors. � In addition, Radio Liberty needs new facilities to
- reath geographic areas of the USSR now only marginally covered. A
Minimum program of modernization, eistablis'hed by careful'Agency
review in coopel-ation with the Bureau of the Budget, calls for an out-
lay of $8, 330,000. This itdm was struck from CIA's FY 1971 budget;
it will be included in the FY 1972 budget.
� �
Second�..,welpropose increased �exploitation of _intellectual, political,
and economic dissent among Soviets and Eastern Europeans. We can:
�
step up. our efforts to obtain, publish, and disseminate writings by
� -SOViet'dissidents, such as the eminent scientist, Andrey.Sakharov-,--and ,
---,--theundergrOund writer's. In aadition-to their considerable literar.y
1:arid'i the r poignant protests' against the violation' of. human,rights& �
they focus on the key vulnerability of the Soviet regime its. inability
. to manage an efficient and humane society. Alexander Solzhenitsyn
���has�-a new manuscript in the works, "The Archipelago of Gulag.-", We.
ntensify its impaCt by publicizing our precise knowledge ,of:The. � c.�,--.,---
extensive- Soviet forced labor' camp system. This would be part. of
th.e '''``--i''C'ai--lifyiehsensive and: hard'-hitting. Campaign -to expose the Soviet ,Qo.vprn-
ment's repression of its own citizens.
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There are sizeable groups of Poles and Czechs in exile in
Western Europe. We shall support them in establishing a forum to
carry their voices of dissent. A magazine, whose pages would be
open to Communists and non-Communists, would be a most appro-
priate medium for broadening the debate on intellectual, political,
and economic dissent. For example, Ota Sik, the Czech ecoriomist,
is in exile in Western Europe. He has the credentials to stimulate
debate on a key issue facing the Soviet leaders today. If they hope
to regain economic momentum and to manage modern technology,
� they must consider diluting Communist Party political control. We
' 'can offer Sik and others 'like him support for an institute to study the
Soviet. economy and to.bring an international focus on the gut issue.
facing the Soviet regime.
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t)
Lastly, there is the exploitable potential latent in the ethnic
_ . .
_ rilinOrities of the Soviet Union.. In addition to the comparatively low-
..� / �
...;key2approaches outlined above, we could -- given policy approval.--
stimulate nationality aspirations, particularly in the Ukraine and
among the Turkic minorities of Soviet Asia. There have been clear
indications that the minorities have been growing restive and increasing-
ly assertive in the face of regime pressure for Russification and corn-
__ plete...assimilation. By initiating direct, though covert, support to key .
- Minority elements, and by channeling their energies toward a more 1
_ organized resistance to regime pressure, we would touch an extremely.
sensitive Soviet n,erve.
Attacking the Soviet Presence
� Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia and enunciation of the Brezhnev
--doctrine'has crystallized, disillusion with the Soviet regime in WesterA .7
European Communist circles and given us a basis for a heavy attack
� on the Soviet presence and influence outside the Bloc. We are in touch.
t.with-Rierge.r G ar audy, ' a' leading French Communist theoretician.-,wh&-has
. Li-Y,7.1 iconcluded that Communism, especially. as it is practiced in-:the. USSR -1�-�
� is simply not valid for the world today. We will support the widest
possible dissemination of his two latest books, which argue his thesis
.most .convincingly. We will stimulate wide discussion.of.the Soviet
-:claim,to..infallibility, especially among dissident Communists and,othar
1 - __leftists._ We will explore-the feasibility of a formal organization. and
to include:,Garaudy and 'other leading�dissidents'i: such, asc. I�ii:
Paul Noirot, Rossana Rossanda, Ernst Fischer, and Franz Marek.
�
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In addition to these actions in Europe, we propose to step up
our campaign in the developing areas to show those who would emulate
Communist methods the basic incompatibility between the Communist
system and sensible solutions to local problems. The convolutions of
Soviet foreign policy will be brought home to local leaders in a way
that engages their own vital interests. The natural momentum of the
Sino-Soviet dispute carries into competition overseas where the
interests of the host countries are ignored. It has helped us, to sp14
local Communist parties, notably in India. More of this can be done.
ite,j
wili'step tip our campaigns to split and keep disunited Cornmunst,,,i c,
-parges wherever Czechoslovakia, dissent within the USSR, and the
� -8ino.:Soviet dispute have already sown seeds of doubt. Where SinoT
:1-.!,, ; � "
SO'Nriet''COmpetition already exists and is readily visible, as in Yemen
'and Tanzania, we can make it clear that such competition is against,;
the-best interests of host countries and serves only the aims of either,.
the Chinese or the Soviets.
Orchestration of Covert Propaganda
We have an already extensive capability to exploit anti-Communist.
themes abroad. This will be strengthened in order to handle an'intens.i---
� . ..
campaign.
�.
(b)(1)
(b)(3).
Our ability to exploit these facilities to! date has been limited by the -
sensitivity of local governments, but the coming months will see action_
on the following issues.
The Soviets are currently obsessed with Lenin as his centenary ,
on 22 April approaches. They are extremely sensitive-to the possibility
--.-
of a counter-campaign. We have already directed our assets to con-
1-tr'a�diCt"t14 idolatrous image of Lenin being promoted by the-Soviets:in-,
selected areas where the subject is a live one and where the,Soviets,
are making a major effort. Drawing oh dramatic examples, such as
Svetlana's view that Stalin was a logical outcome of Lenin1.s policies,,
we are'prepared to counter the Soviet distortions both by informed
commentaries on Lenin and by.. relying on Lenin's own writings. Use
-
"(--''''6i-thikriiaferial will be adapted to fit-local occasions and: circurnstanoes.,
,
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� 7
a Liz
The Brezhnev doctrine is a dominant theme in propaganda
guidance for all our assets. Its presentation is tailored for specific
audiences, and for exploitation in conversations with our overseas
contacts including friendly intelligence services. Since the doctrine
threatens repression of any individual or organizational dissent against
the Soviet, we can find its applicability in all areas of the world where
the Soviets are present.
We have recently completed a comprehensive analysis of the
-!- -..L''thebliCkre Soviet performance in foreign aid and trade, which will�be� �
giveri 'Wide circulation with heavy stress on specific applications in
uncaeVeloping 'areas. The .Soviets have over-promised and under- 7:: �
� delivered, a fact which should be brought home vividly to prospective.
recipients of Soviet largesse.
In this connection we are currently disseminating information
about the spread of schistosomiasis, resulting from Soviet failure to
� foresee ecological problems in building Aswan Dam. This is the first
strike in a campaign to publicize problems emanating from Soviet con-
�struction of the Aswan Dam, � hailed as one of their major projects in
the developing world. We shall continue to effect such carefully tar- �
geted� exposures where local leaders can identify with local problems
and Soviet handling of them.
Where in the past we have exposed the dichotomy between external
Soviet propaganda and domestic treatment of organized religion,
especially Islam, we believe much more can be done to embarrass the-
Soviets on this issue. The Moslem countries are particularly recep- -�
----five, and we shall keep their attention focused on it by steady drum-.,..
fire. -We have also exposed the Soviet anti-Buddhist policy, and will
continue to do so where it will have the most impact.
Use of the Organizational Weapon
Our previous experience in fighting Soviet subversion of voluntary_
organizations, labor, students, women, etc., has given us a line of
'departure for an expanded program to neutralize continuing Soviet � �i; ��,
initiatives in those sectors. The arena is, of course, chiefly the
uPderdeveloped world.: The problem has been, and still is,, .to identify,,
train, and support leaders capable of providing a democratic alternative
" "to Soviet- supported front organizations. Labor, youth, and many other
sectors of the rapidly growing urban proletariat cry out for more
.� atteption than.w.e have. ben-able .to. Oye them in tlie past...few years... ; y
�
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�
Black Operations and Harassment
;�
There is room for considerable expansion of our use of "black"
techniques, particularly in harassment operations against the Soviets
in countries where the population is relatively credulous: Selective
I use of fabrications has been very effective in Africa, and has led to.
exacerbation of relations between the Chinese and the Soviets, as
Well as -between both of the latter and lo _al overnmenks: ' La
�
t:( in
�
�
(b)(1)
(b)(3)
The Soviets abroad are extremely sensitive to signs of hostility,
especially towards high-level travelers, and they usually over-react,
blaming the local governments for whatever untoward incidents may
have occurred. We have sponsored anti-Communist. demonstrations _
in the past, and will expand our presently limited capability to do so
in the future: The capabilities vary greatly and their use is severely -
circumscribed by'local conditions. The Soviets are-also sensitive to
exposure of.their intelligence personnel anl operations. A prominent _
defector from the Soviet intelligence services tells us that "what the
KGB fears like a plague are operational flaps that become known to the
general public and are exploited by the enemy via propaganda." -
Another defector says that these exposures have an unsteadying effect
on the subject and create problems for himself and his immediate.
superiors, as well as Soviet intelligence headquarters. To date we
.,,,have,heen circumspect in exploiting .that sensitivity,. for reasons, of 1.1oLti
our own security. Nonetheless, we are in a position where we can
:7 dr aw ncr easing ly on our extensive knowledge of their personnel and'
activities to expose them where it will hurt.
Election Operations
��1:.There have been numerous instances when,. facing the threat.
al'CommUnist�Party: or popular front election victory in the Free '
World, we have met the threat and turned it successfully. Guyana in
%. � : ����
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/1963 and Chile in 1964 are good examples of what can be accomplished
under difficult circumstances. Similar situations may soon face us in
various parts of the world, and we are prepared for action with care-
fully planned covert election programs when U.S. policy calls for them.
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